The Animal
by gravity bird
Summary: The planet set in darkness serves as judge, jury and executioner for those stranded there. But is their salvation much safer than the axe coming down on their heads? Or are they dead if they do and dead if they don't?
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Riddick, Pitch Black, any of the characters from the movies or anything in the universe except for Bryn. She is all mine I tell you!

**Author's Note:** So I watched Pitch Black, Chronicles of Riddick and then another movie in the same basic genre and I read some fanfiction. It occured to me that a lot of the female characters I've seen have softened Riddick in one way or another (not that this is bad in their story I actually kind of like it!) and I had a thought - what if the entire situation was reversed? So this is my take on that idea - this is only the Prologue - so we shall see where it goes from there!

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"Sascha! Hurry, we don't have time. Just leave it all! Grab her, lets just go!" Sascha turned, picking up the small and scared child. Five years they had been on this planet, why this had happened now she didn't know. And she didn't care – all she knew was that she had to take care of her daughter. She was the only one that mattered right now. Not her life, not her brother's, just her daughter. Her husband had already been taken by the monsters. Those spires had been so innocent looking, a core sample from just a little deeper would have been the find to make. Those were not normal rock, they were soft like clay but sharp as glass. She didn't know what they were, but those things lived in them. And her loving husband Bridge was gone. The first to go.

She felt more than heard the sobbing of her daughter against her shoulder as she dragged herself into the coring room with her brother. Trying not to stumble. The last of their reserve power had finally died. The Coring Room was their only hope. The only chance they had to survive. "Sash – keep her quiet. They'll hear her." The sobbing grew quieter as she tried to half smother her child into her chest. Just keep her quiet – it kept running through her head. She didn't care that she could be killing her daughter right now, but she had to keep her quiet. It was pitch dark in the room, all she could hear was the heavy breathing of the last of the geo-team around her. Thirty two to start, twelve now. "Hush Bryn – just hush sweetness." She tried to whisper it to her daughter. Please be quiet.

It was then that the clicking began. It began so softly at first that she wasn't sure that she could hear it. Then others started to hear it. Finally she knew, they had forgotten to chain the cellar grating down. They would lift it up and off easily. "Bryn – I want you to take your flashlight and go to the kitchen. Remember when mommy told you to never ever lock the door? Yeah – lock the door. And don't open it for anyone." She handed the girl her toy flashlight, pushing her towards the door that would take her to the outside, to the kitchen. They knew the girl would keep the light on. She was afraid of the dark. She was eight years old – she would be okay. She knew what was going on. "Go sweetie. I love you."

She did what her mother asked of her. She went to the kitchen and locked the doors. There was lots of food, rations, dried out. She would be okay until her mother came to get her. Screaming echoed just as she locked the door. And something deep within the girl clicked and told her that she would never see her mother again.


	2. To Be Human

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pitch Black/Chronicles of Riddick, Vin Diesel or any of the other characters in this aside from the obvious.

**Author's Note:** So thank you to those that made this a story on their alert list! And thank you to those that read the prologue. I know this is kind of short, but I can't guarantee consistency with my chapter lengths. Once I feel it has reached a chapter end point I tend to stop and then start on the next chapter. This chapter could have gone on longer, but I think for now it works.

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Her teeth crashed against bone, sending goosebumps down her spine. That noise – nothing like that had ever been heard on Hades. Not unless the darkness was back. Fear spiked through her, dragging through her heart like the shiv she held in her hand. Her breath hitched as one more screech of metal on metal echoed through the settlement. Pulling herself out of the kitchen pantry, she could hear heavy breathing. Taking a split moment to calm herself she moved forward, eyes searching through the darkness. After so long in the darkness she had fairly good night vision. Scraping sounds made her rush through the top compartment into the coring room. She pulled back just in time to avoid becoming a snack for the hatchlings. The boy in the Coring Room was not quite so lucky. His face looked like her last meal, and that was nothing pleasant.

She jumped down with a practised silence, she knew he was dead. But she had to look, she couldn't not look. Maybe – no he was dead. "Ali! Ali!" She heard the yells for Ali, she assumed this young boy was Ali. She didn't want him to be found here, she grabbed his small body and tried to put it into the cupboard. She would bury him later. "What are you doing with him!" Light flooded the room, stinging her eyes. A feral hiss made the light on her eyes waver. The man holding the light was stunned as way everyone else. Taking their confusion onto her side, she grabbed onto the nearest duct, throwing herself up it with a speed taken only from living in such horror for so long.

She turned, dragging dull and broken nails over the flesh that held onto her hips. She turned fully, sharp teeth bared as she grabbed at the nearest piece of flesh there was. The woman screamed, releasing her as her ear was torn by sharp teeth. Rushing towards the door she paused for a moment – the door was blocked by a blonde man with blue eyes and a gun, a large hulking man that smelled like a predator, and two other men. But they were not in her way, only the one with the gun and the one with the muscles were. Her pause was enough time for the one with the big gage to grab her by her hair. Dull nails dragged over skin again, a growl erupting from her as she kicked. Her heel making solid contact with his head.

She felt herself pulled back by her waist. Why wouldn't they just let her go! She let another feral sound escape her as she tried to get away. This one wouldn't let go like the others when she fought back. She simply found herself pinned on the ground beneath his weight. "Settle down!" The roar echoed in her mind. But still her hips bucked and her eyes flashed with a wild intent. The creature pinning her roared at her again and she roared right back. Unafraid of him. He smelt of predator and she killed predators, she did not run from them. She managed to free a hand long enough to grab the back of his head to drag him to the ground. He however simply flipped them over again, pinning her beneath him still. Using his knees he pinned her at the elbow.

Her legs still bucked. "Jack! Get away from her!"

"Who is she?" The man that smelled simply of liquor asked aloud.

"Another survivor?" That must be Jack asking – such a young thing.

"No – look at her clothes, her hair, her attitude, she's been on this planet a long time." That was the one with the gage. He smelled of human filth on the inside.

She still had not settled as the weight atop her had demanded. She growled, lifting her hips and fighting with her blunt nails. Trying to do some damage. "Riddick – get off of her." That was a woman she hadn't heard before. Not the one that she'd bitten for sure.

"If I get off of her, she's going to attack someone again." Simple, but his tone was heavy and thick like he thought getting off of her was a bad idea. She heard the rustling of metal and suddenly felt the weight of chains being put on her wrists and ankles. Fighting would be near impossible now.

"Now she won't." The weight – Riddick – retreated making her take a deep breath of air she didn't realize that she'd needed. He'd been cutting off her air supply. With the sudden sharp intake of air she felt almost light headed. She pushed herself to her feet, muscles pulsing with unused energy.

"Fry – look at her, she couldn't be much older than you." Hmm, the one who'd called for the boy, Ali. She opened her mouth, a sore croak escaping. She hadn't talked in so long.

"Look, she wants to say something. What's your name?" Fry - the woman she hadn't bit asked her. A simple question but one that dragged her heart down. She hadn't said her name since her mother died. She swallowed hard, forcing back the pain in her unused vocal cords.

"Bryndalin Dantes." Her voice cracked on her last name – it hurt to speak and she did not wish to do so again in the future. She had learned early on that to be human was to be dead. To be an animal was to live.


End file.
